From the end of April onwards, or to be more precise from April 22nd , players who would like to light up a cigarette while playing their favorite games in a New Orleans casino will not be permitted to do that.
Once the new law comes into force, players will not be allowed to smoke within the casino premises.
However, the only land-based casino in the area – Harrah’s Casino, wants local regulators to reconsider their decision and restart the debates concerning this delicate matter.
What worries Harrah’s Casino executives so much is the fact that the smoking ban may cause serious troubles with the revenues. They supported their argument with statistics of the revenues generated in the state of Illinois. Numbers clearly show that the implemented smoking ban caused a sharp decline in revenues estimated at approximately 20%.
The spokesperson of the popular casino venue commented on the matter and said that the smoking ban would affect the bottom line of the city in a negative manner. Apart from that, tax revenue is expected to undergo significant decline as well.
However, it seems like local communities and officials are not on the same page with Harrah’s executives. The majority of them claim that once the smoking bill is implemented, the revenues may even jump as non-smokers will be more willing to go to casinos.
Councilman Gray did not miss to mention that the smoking prohibition may reduce the sum of money set aside for health issues every year.
Actually, the executives of Harrah’s did not deny the fact that smoking poses a serious threat to the health but they disagree with the clauses of the soon-to-be-imposed smoking bill as it will harm their business.
Representatives of Harrah’s requested the topic related to the smoking ban to be further discussed and eventually a compromise to be reached. What they want is the establishment of smoking areas similar to those in the other states. They will have separate ventilation systems and the smoke should not pose a problem.
Although there is a chance players who are non-smokers to compensate for the eventual decline in revenues, the other alternative seems more possible. The city will lose money as smokers will most probably opt for a gambling destination where the smoking ban is not on the agenda. In other words, Harrah’s is put in a pretty unfavorable position as those players who are currently going to Harrah’s to roll the dice are expected to go to Biloxi, Baton Rouge or Lake Charles.
